Patrick thought about the words he’d seen that morning: the careful lines of the cut letters, the smell of sulphur from the envelope. He shook the thought away, reaching for the toilet paper.

Outside the cubicle his security would be waiting – they knew his routine. Routine and strength were the paths to order. It was a pity that the letter writer hadn’t understood that.

Patrick flushed the toilet.

It made no sound.

Just beyond, the bathroom door clattered closed.

The last words flashed in his memory as the ticking in the cistern suddenly stopped.

“You’ll pay.”

(c) Tim Austin 2016. Promo image by Dan Watson via Unsplash.

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It was hard to breathe in the gas mask. It was hard to see the monitor, let alone the Petri Dish.

The white lights glared from the sterile steel of the bench. In the quiet of the lab Susan’s heart thundered. Her hands trembled.

She pressed a sample to the dish, the monitor swarming with a mass of writhing black lines, striking out at the human cells.

A tear rolled down her cheek as Susan looked from the screen to the gallery.

“Doctor?”

“,….. Two weeks. And then,…”

She hadn’t the heart to say it.

“Call the President.”

(c) Tim Austin 2016. Promo image by Jesse Orrico via Unsplash

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Ella ran her finger over the red twine, watching it as it tugged against the pin in the wall. It all led to this: the answer was here if only she could make the right connection. She threw himself back into the chair.

Again and again the killer had struck. There seemed no reason or pattern, and there were never any witnesses.

She lifted the jar, two severed fingers floating within.

“You think you’re untouchable but you’re not. You’ll make mistakes.”

Ella’s phone chimed. Her blood ran cold as she read the message.

“Do you like my present?”

(c) Tim Austin 2016.

Today’s story title was donated by Eddie Robson, Science Fiction writer of, among other things, Doctor Who, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the radio comedy “Welcome to Our Village, Please Invade Carefully, starring Peter Davison. You can reach him on twitter @EddieRobson.

If you’d like to donate a word, please do. Just pop your word and your name in the comments section below or tweet them to me @timaustin2k using the hashtag #onewordonestory.